Unity the focus of National Remembrance Service

Two years on from the Christchurch mosque attacks, people will come together at a National Remembrance Service to remember and honour those who died and to build on the spirit of unity that came out of the tragedy.

Fifty-one people died as a result of the shootings at the Al Noor and Linwood mosques on 15 March 2019 and many others were injured and traumatised.

To mark the second anniversary of the mosque attacks, a national remembrance service, Ko Tātou, Tātou We Are One, will be held at Christchurch Arena, on Saturday 13 March starting at 3pm.

Last year’s National Remembrance Service to mark the first anniversary was cancelled due to COVID-19.

The programme for this year’s service has been based on what was planned for last year. It was put together with input from those most affected by the attacks, including survivors and families of the victims.

Students from Burnside High School will perform music at the service. One student from the school died in the mosque attacks.

Local Muslim leaders, and the Mayor and other dignitaries will also take part in the service, which will be jointly led by the local Muslim community, Christchurch City Council, the Government and Ngāi Tūāhuriri as mana whenua.

The event is being held on 13 March, rather than the actual anniversary, as it’s hoped holding it on a weekend day will allow more people to attend.

The Remembrance Service will be live streamed for people to view worldwide, particularly as COVID-19 border restrictions mean people from overseas will not be able to travel to Christchurch to attend the event.

The full order of service and further details will be released in coming weeks.

Tributes

In the interests of sustainability and minimising waste, people wanting to leave tributes around the city are asked to make sure the tributes are entirely compostable, with flowers left unwrapped, and any ties or attachments able to be composted.